Legislative branch: unicameral Parliament (84 seats; members elected by popular vote to serve five-year terms); note - in addition, there are up to nine nominated members; the losing opposition candidate who came closet to winning a seat may be appointed as a "nonconstituency" member elections: last held 3 November 2001 (next to be held 25 June 2007) election results: other 24.7%; seats by party - PAP 82, WP 1, SDA 1
Judicial branch: Supreme Court (chief justice is appointed by the president with the advice of the prime minister, other judges are appointed by the president with the advice of the chief justice); Court of Appeals
Political parties and leaders: Democratic Progressive Party or DPP
[leader NA]; People's Action Party or PAP [Chok Tong GOH, secretary
general] - the governing party; Singapore Democratic Alliance or SDA
[CHIAM See Tong] (includes Singapore People's Party or SPP [CHIAM See
Tong], Singapore Democratic Party or SDP [CHEE Soon Juan], National
Solidarity Party [leader NA], Singapore Justice Party [leader NA], and
Singapore Malay National Organization [leader NA]); Workers' Party or WP
[J. B. JEYARETNAM]
Political pressure groups and leaders: NA
International organization participation: APEC, ARF, AsDB, ASEAN,
BIS, C, CCC, CP, ESCAP, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICFTU, ICRM, IFC,
IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, ISO, ITU, NAM, OPCW, PCA, UN,
UN Security Council (temporary), UNCTAD, UNIKOM, UNMEE, UNTAET, UPU,
WCL, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTrO
Diplomatic representation in the US: chief of mission: Ambassador Heng
Chee CHAN consulate(s): New York consulate(s) general: San Francisco
FAX: [1] (202) 537-0876 telephone: [1] (202) 537-3100 chancery: 3501
International Place NW, Washington, DC 20008
Diplomatic representation from the US: chief of mission: Ambassador Franklin L. LAVIN embassy: 27 Napier Road, Singapore 258508 mailing address: PSC Box 470, FPO AP 96534-0001 telephone: [65] 476-9100 FAX: [65] 476-9340
Flag description: two equal horizontal bands of red (top) and white; near the hoist side of the red band, there is a vertical, white crescent (closed portion is toward the hoist side) partially enclosing five white five-pointed stars arranged in a circle
Economy Singapore
Economy - overview: Singapore, a highly developed and successful free-market economy, enjoys a remarkably open and corruption-free environment, stable prices, and one of the highest per capita GDPs in the world. The economy depends heavily on exports, particularly in electronics and manufacturing, and was hard hit in 2001 by the global recession and the slump in the technology sector. In 2001, GDP contracted by 2.2%. The economy is expected to recover in 2002 in response to improvements in the US economy, and GDP growth for 2002 is projected to be 3% to 4%. In the longer term the government hopes to establish a new growth path that will be less vulnerable to the external business cycle than the current export-led model, but is unlikely to abandon efforts to establish Singapore as Southeast Asia's financial and high-tech hub.